EASTHAMPTON – After being crowned Miss Pioneer Valley earlier this year, Anastasia Lusnia of Easthampton will compete next month for the title of Miss Massachusetts.
“I can’t believe it’s coming so quickly,” Lusnia said Thursday. “I’ve been preparing for about two months now – I feel pretty ready.”
The 77th Miss Massachusetts Scholarship Pageant will be held July 1 and 2 at the Hanover Theatre for the Performing Arts in Worcester. Lusnia and 23 other young women from across the state will compete for scholarships and the chance to represent Massachusetts in the Miss America contest in September.
Each competition – local, state and national – consists of a 10-minute, off-stage interview, an on-stage interview and talent, swimsuit and evening wear segments.
In January, Lusnia won one of three titles at the Miss Western Massachusetts Scholarship Organization’s contest.
Amanda Morton, of Otis, won Miss Western Massachusetts and Jennifer Bergeron, a Springfield College sophomore from Taunton, won Miss Hampshire County. Each received $300 to put toward their education. The titles are open to any women who live or attend school in western Massachusetts.
Lusnia’s talent – en pointe ballet – helped her win the local crown and she hopes that her skills will once again wow the judges in the statewide competition. She said she was among the top 10 scorers in last year’s Miss Massachusetts.
“I’ve danced since the age of 3,” Lusnia said. “Pretty much all my life it’s been my number-one passion.”
She started her dance career at Hackworth School of Performing Arts in Easthampton, where she received training in several styles. In high school she turned her focus to ballet at the Massachusetts Academy of Ballet in Holyoke.
“I went away each summer to train in different cities around the country,” she said. “I was able to improve very quickly doing it every day, all day.”
Lusnia just completed her freshman year at the University of South Florida where she is majoring in nursing and minoring in dance.
The ability to study both disciplines was a leading factor in her enrolling at the college.
“It was really tricky to find a school that offered ballet and nursing and would allow me to do both,” she said.
Lusnia said she knew she wanted to become a nurse after shadowing a labor and delivery nurse at Baystate Medical Center in Springfield while she was in high school, because a career in the health field will allow her to help others while staying active.
“I like being on my feet, on the go,” she said.
Lusnia said there’s a lot of misconceptions about pageants.
“I think the interview really says a lot,” she said. “You have to be prepared to answer any question about any topic – about the news, politics and ourselves,” she said.
Kim Supernaw, executive director of the Miss Western Massachusetts Scholarship Organization, said there is also a large public service component to holding one of the group’s crowns.
“We really focus on appearances and getting out in the community,” she said. “They can get phone calls to do anything in the community – from performances, to doing kids events, walking or running in charity walks and runs.”
Morton, for example, is set to volunteer at the Autism Speaks Walk this weekend in Westfield. And Lusnia last weekend sold raffle tickets at a Jimmy Fund golf tournament in Springfield.
There’s no entry fee to compete in the pageants, though all competitors in the western Massachusetts contests must raise $100 for the Children’s Miracle Network, Supernaw said.
Supernaw said she has enjoyed working with Lusnia for the past two years.
“She’s just wonderful,” she said. “We’re very excited to have her as part of the program.”
Chris Lindahl can be reached at clindahl@gazettenet.com.